Montclair State University’s College of Math and Science Research Grants at the New Jersey School of Conservation

Proposals for 2010 summer research at Montclair State University’s New Jersey School of Conservation (NJSOC) are now being accepted. The School of Conservation is the largest and oldest university field station delivering environmental education programs in the western hemisphere. For 60 years the NJSOC has incorporated a two-prong approach to fostering a greater understanding of natural systems, by supporting scientific research and delivering environmental education programs. International leaders in environmental education from twenty countries have used the educational model developed at the School of Conservation to create and deliver similar programs around the planet.

The field station is located at the base of the Kittatinny Ridge within Stokes State Forest in northwestern New Jersey. Over the years a number of scientists have used the 240-acre campus and the surrounding 32,000 acres of Stokes Sate Forest and High Point State Park to conduct research. Important research projects in ecology involving birds, mammals, reptiles, amphibians, fish, mollusks, insects and plants have based their operations at the field center. The diverse habitats of the school have enabled graduate students, post-doctoral fellows, and university faculty members to carry out significant research in ecology, conservation, animal behavior, systematics, biological diversity, and evolutionary biology. Upland deciduous forests dominate Stokes and Highpoint, with spring-fed streams, lakes and ponds, wetlands and bogs, and coniferous stands dotting the landscape. The adjoining Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area contains 70,000 acres of alluvial floodplain and mixed deciduous forest of the Appalachians along a 40-mile stretch of the upper Delaware River.

Research grants provided by the College of Math and Science help to foster and support scientific research at the field station and include housing, laboratory space, and stipends to qualified researchers. These grants are designed to support work in basic and applied ecology, conservation biology, evolution, geology, animal behavior, taxonomy, biochemistry, and other academic disciplines.

Summer research grants for 2010 will be awarded to selected graduate and post-graduate investigators for studying the flora and fauna of the environs within and surrounding the field station. These grants include a stipend of up to $3000, and room and board. Funds are provided to support the purchase of equipment, travel, food, publication costs, and salaries for assistants, and must be expended during the summer of 2010. All grant proposals must include an abstract, background and significance of the research, objectives, and methods of study to be employed. The principle investigator should also list all current research projects and submit an up-to-date curriculum vitae. A detailed budget section should breakdown how the stipend will be used. The names and contact information of three references dealing specifically with the proposed work at the field station should also be submitted.

The deadline for 2010 summer research proposals is March 15th. Grant proposals and letters of reference can be emailed to fitzgeraldr@mail.montclair.edu, with “MSU/SOC Grant Proposal” in the subject line. Acceptable file formats are MS Word and PDF. All proposals must include a completed Application Form. Investigators will be notified via email once their application materials have been received. All proposals will be reviewed by our Research Advisory Committee and the results will be announced by April 15th. Any additional questions or clarification of the proposal process can be obtained by emailing (address above) or by calling 973-948-4646 ext 27. The application for funded research can be found here.